Anyone have a soft coated wheaten terrier?

We have been researching this breed and it sounds like a gem of a dog! If anyone can attest to this, please post here!

Thanks!!

An on-line friend has a soft coated Wheaton and she always raves about the great attributes of this breed. She has also rescued a couple over the years and I believe her son & his family also took quite a road trip to rescue one as well. She has told me they make wonderful family additions.

Thanks for the reply! I've read that too about their temperment but I wanted some firsthand experiences about it from owners or people who have met them.

Wonderful dog in so many ways. Still a terrier so will need proper training and socialization...like all dogs!

I hear that they can be great dogs, this so far has not been my experience with them. However, with proper training and socialization (something most Wheaten owners I know failed to do) I'm sure your dog will do just fine. But be warned that they are fairly insane unless asleep.

I love that description Zoom...fitting for many wonderful terriers..wound but wonderful~

So wheatens are not good dogs? I get so confused on this site when people criticize every breed of dog. Every dog would be a terror if not trained properly, right?

I'm just going by all the breed descriptions on the net. Has anyone here actually trained one? What was your experience?

Thanks everyone for the input...much appreciated! I need all the info I can get!

I've had a few in my classes and they were NOT good students! They were both first time owners, and these were pet store dogs, so not of the best breeding. I would imagine a SCWT from a good breeder would have a better temperament and therefore be easier to manage. The ones I've seen at shows seemed lovely and attentive (of course, there was liver involved, but still).

I think I'm going to give up looking for a dog. We are limited due to allergies by my hubby. I've posted on a couple of different websites questions about breeds and every single one came out as "bad" or not good.


Maybe I'll post what requirements we have and you folks can suggest some breeds for me?

Low-shedding
Small-medium
Good with children
Can be let off-leash (and come back! lol)
Active but not hyper


Any suggestions?

I would use this breed selector test first; I find it's very accurate: www.k9country.com/perl/dogBreed.pl

If it seems like much of what we do is denigrate dogs, is because many of us deal every day with the aftermath of what happens when someone rushes out and buys a dog with very little forethought or research. We really do love dogs, we just want as many people as possible to fully realize what they're getting themselves in to, which will hopefully keep more dogs out of the shelter/rescue system.

I work for a boarding/training/grooming/daycare pet resort and wheatons make up a huge part of the dog population there. 95% of those dogs were bought because they make adorable puppies and most came from a petstore. The owners have no clue to terrier temperments, drive or needs, which results in a hyper-active disaster of a dog. I've been bitten by a couple different ones for no particular reason other than they got overexcited, which very quickly turned into anger and I was the closest thing they could reach. Another SCWT I dealt with would get so incredibly angry at the other dogs that were going home before him that he would go on a rampage and bite anyone within reach, and if we put him behind a baby-gate, he would literally jump up and down like a little kid and throw a fit. We couldn't crate him without risking personal injury because of how crate aggressive he was. I tried very hard to work with him, and I made quite a bit of progress so that he while he would still get upset, but he could at least contain himself and sit by the door instead of sliding into a frenzy. Part of that was poor breeding I believe, another part was that he had a very terse owner who wasn't a good match for his dog.

There also seems to be very little stablility when it comes to size, but again, I see a zillion BYB/puppymill petstore dogs.

Portugese Water Dogs are great dogs know to be non-shedding.

Dont forget that posting on boards are all from opinions as well.
ANY dog can be a good dog if you have the time, patience and energy for that specific breed.

An example would be - I have a Belgian Tervuren, but NOT everyone can have a good one. Many people are scared of them because of what their temperments can be like - even some judges at shows that I've been to with Riot, my dog, were scared to run their hands over him - for no reason that he has given them either.

Everyone has "their breed".

Honestly it depends on what YOU, as an owner are willing to put into this dog. Make SURE you research for a good breeder, get a puppy from parents that have been hip, elbows and eyes tested.

Any Terrier will have "terrier" instincts that you can't get rid of. Ie. stubborness, but you can learn to work WITH it to benefit you.

Any dog can be reliable off leash in certain situations - it just depends on the method of training, the amount of training and the maturity of the dog.

I've known a handful of Huskys that were 100% reliable off leash through woods, open fields etc. but then again, I know many other Huskys who I'd never trust off leash.

Just be careful and picky on who the parents are of the puppy you bring home.

Poodles are fabulous dogs to have around, they are smart, willing to please, but do have LOTS of energy! hehe They also come in 3 different sizes.
DONT be fooled by the "teacup" poodle - there is NO such thing by any standard. They are bred by BYB..

Anyways, Good luck and I hope that patrolling dog forums hasn't put you off owning your own dog. Your doing the first greatest step in owning a dog - the research!

Low-shedding
Small-medium
Good with children
Can be let off-leash (and come back! lol)
Active but not hyper

If you're looking for a dog of this Standard, it's really going to boil down to the actual, specific dog. If I read this, I'd originally say Yorkie, because this discribes Dixie exactly, but not all Yorkies are this way. Most people wouldn't have a Yorkie around kids because they are "nippy" Dixie ADORES kids, and almost wags her little tail off when we go through the line to pick up my sister(10yrs old). She has never growled at, or nipped/bitten anyone, including children (she's been around all different ages from 3mo-5yrs and all in between and over that). She's ONE dog out of many though. Another Yorkie owner may not be able to say this about their Yorkie. Also, Yorkies are known to be Hyper...Dixie's the opposite, she lays on the couch all day unless I take her outside, and then she RUNS! She loves it, but she'll come to me the second I call her name. Silky Terriers, I've had AWESOME experience with. They are small (8-12lbs) and do awesome with kids. I've never met one who didn't like kids. There could be others who couldn't say that, but in my experience, Silkies are GREAT. The only problem we had with Princess, our Silky who passed about 5mo ago was that until we trained her she was a runner. If she got outside, she'd run off like a bullet after a cat, squirrel, etc. After she was about 6mo though she really settled down, and never really had any desire to run off. If you properly train your dog, and take it to obediance classes etc, you're going to have a good dog. Any breed coul fit this standard if trained well (exept the small part...lol! they're kinda born with that one! ) Good luck in chooseing a breed!!!!!!!

^^ Dixie, My Yorkie ^^



^^ Princess, my Silky, RIP♥ ^^

oh ok, so you are posting your experiences based on kennel/shelter dogs (which could have been bred badly).

The breeder I have been talking with has been breeding them since 1979 and does not have them outside at all (outdoor kennels/runs). They are raised indoor with her family and grandchildren. She sounds really fantastic and that she knows what she talking about.

I'm not talking about your generic "cement and chain link" kennels; this is an upscale bording resort where our client's median salary is at least $80,000/yr. These are the people who go out and will spend $1500 on a dog because they believe that the higher the price, the better quality the dog. It works for cars, not for dogs. However, I fully believe that at least 75% of our clients have no clue about dogs, hence all the petstore buys.

What it really boils down to is that Wheatens are terriers, which means that they will have an insane amount of energy when young, will dig, bark and chase small animals. With proper training, you can direct that energy, teach them not to bark and dig and while most will probably always chase squirrels given the chance, you at least stand a better chance of them coming back to you when called.

If your breeder fits the criteria of a responsible breeder (take a look at the threads with a thumbtack symbol at the top of the Dog Breeds/Breeding forum for what that is), then go for it.

A woman I work with got a SCWT, unfortunately, from a puppy mill. They went through the same puppy stuff that I did with my Belgian (but without the biting). They also didn't get any training. They still love their dog. He does have to sleep in his crate because he's a little chewer. Loves to eat glasses and all the usually stuff that has the family members' scent on it. They are very good at taking the dog for long walks. My friend is very fitness conscious, so the dog goes with her on 3 miles walks. But they really don't have any problems other than the normal untrained dog type of thing.

But the key is, the whole family loves this dog, and he seems like a good dog from my visits.

Don't forget, there are Wheaton rescues.

http://www.wheatenterrierrescue.org/